Cross country begins season with a strong start

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The Bison men’s and women’s cross country teams opened their 2019-2020 season at the Pitt Panther Opener on Aug. 30. Both the Orange and Blue women’s and men’s teams came in second place overall.

On the women’s side, it was a great start to the season, with Ashley Blair ’21 winning the women’s race and subsequently being named Patriot League Runner of the Week. Clocking in with a time of 14:13.36, Blair managed to achieve a solid finish in the 4K race and continues to hold the fifth-fastest time in Bison history.

“The Pittsburgh meet was very cool, as we’ve never been there before and this is actually the first year they’ve hosted a meet in a long time,” Blair said. “Winning was obviously a great way to start my own season, but it was even better knowing that I’ll be able to do big things for my team this year in future meets. Overall, the meet was a lot of fun and I’m hoping we go back next year.”

The women earned a total of 50 points, competing against four other universities, consisting of Pittsburgh, Kent State, Marshall, and Robert Morris. The team recorded a number of strong finishes, with Ashley Blair ’21, Emily Deschler ’22, Ashlyn Ramos ’22, Hope Beyer ’20, and Lauren Gronbeck ’20 all placing in the top 20.

Meanwhile, the men’s team earned a total of 61 points, competing against the same four universities. The team was able to finish with four of their runners – Drew Dorflinger ’20, Connor McMenamin ’21, Brendan McGill ’20, and Domenic Campagna ’23 – in the top 15 out of a field of 47. Dorflinger recorded the fastest time of the day for the men, finishing ninth on the 6k course with a time of 18:22.07.

The men and women’s cross country teams will race next against Colgate University on Sept. 7 at the Harry Lang Invitational.